Position: Board Member

I’m pretty sure my family joined the Coop in the first year of arrival in Potsdam in 2000. I was
an academic (physics) that first was on faculty at SUNY Potsdam. I had been part of a coop and buying clubs before. I’ve been a working member for most of this time; repackaging, bakery cleanup, and a number of years now the guy you see collecting up the cardboard to take to Casella every Saturday. I’ve thought of running for the board before, but try not to get myself overcommitted. I’m currently on the North Country Library System (NCLS) board and rolling off the Potsdam Public Library (PPL) board at the end of June due to term limits. I’m part of my second search committee as NCLS is looking for a new executive director, and the whole board served in this capacity when PPL hired our current director. I am a co-author of the Green House Gas inventory for the Town of Potsdam as a member of our joint village/town Climate Smart Community committee.

I most appreciate being able to buy in bulk and buy local produce. It pains me to see how
COVID 19 protocols have necessitated more plastic packaging. Most weaknesses of the Coop trace back to space limitations of the old residential building. I generally will argue for up-front investment that pays for itself in the long term; be that by improvements in the physical plant to reduce energy bills and our carbon footprint, or offering the best possible employment package to our paid staff that should reduce turnover. These are exciting times as the future Coop will soon become a reality. There are so many possibilities with expanded product lines to a deli. I would work to maintain a balance between a sustainable bottom line along with serving the largest cross section of our community as possible, consistent with cooperative principles.